Texas woman fights flesh-eating bacteria

Updated 8:43 pm, Monday, August 4, 2014

Photo: West Chester University

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Michelle O'Brien, a 30-year-old Austin resident, was infected with Vibrio Vulnificus -- a flesh-eating bacteria found in warm bodies of salt water or contaminated raw seafood -- after cutting her foot on an oyster bed Saturday on Galveston Island, ABC13.com reports.

The bacterium can cause fever and chills, decreased blood pressure, skin lesions and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC says 50 percent of infections are fatal. less

Michelle O'Brien, a 30-year-old Austin resident, was infected with Vibrio Vulnificus -- a flesh-eating bacteria found in warm bodies of salt water or contaminated raw seafood -- after cutting her foot on an ... more

Photo: West Chester University

Texas woman fights flesh-eating bacteria

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AUSTIN -- A Texas woman is recovering after a bout with a flesh-eating bacteria she caught at a Galveston beach.

Michelle O'Brien, a 30-year-old Austin resident, was infected with Vibrio Vulnificus -- a flesh-eating bacteria found in warm bodies of salt water or contaminated raw seafood -- after cutting her foot on an oyster bed Saturday on Galveston Island, ABC13.com reports.

The bacterium can cause fever and chills, decreased blood pressure, skin lesions and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC says 50 percent of infections are fatal.

It also attacks the immune system and can destroy areas near an open wound.

Almost a dozen people have died from illnesses caused by the bacterium, WWLP reports.